Tiller



Nov. 13, 19218. 1,691,352

T. w. HlcKs TILLER Filed March 29, 1923 I5 Sheets-Sheet l Nov. 13, 1928. 1,691,352

T. w. HICKS TILLER 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 29, 1923 Nov. 13, 1928. 1,691,352

T. w. HICKS Filed March 29, 1925 @H501 mm1 Patented Nov. 13, 1928.

j 1,691,352 PATENT GFFICE.

THOMAS W. HICKS, 0F MINNEAIOLIS,V MINNESOTA.

TILLER.

Application led March 29, 1923. Serial No. 628,649`

rlfhis invention relates to improvements in tillers and more particularly to improvementsin shields or guards adapted to be associated with a rotatingtiller shaft of that general type illustrated and described in my prior FatentA No. 1,320,469, dated November 1, 1919. l

In that type of apparatus the rotor or disintegr-ator tiller shaft `which operates upon the furrow as it is turned over by the plow, is driven vat a relatively high rate of speer, that is, four or ve hundred revolutions per minute, and tends to cause the disintegrated'soil lto scatter over an undesirably large area, and it is for this'purpose, amongl others, that a shield is placed about the disintegrator in order to confine the pulverized soily as it falls to the desired locality, with respect to the furrow slice being turned. Furthermore, the shield acts as a guardto prevent any person or' thing coming in contact with the rapidly revolving' `blades ofI one disintegrator;

the disintegrator while in operation. n

It is, therefore, one ofthe objects of the present invention to provide 'a simple and compact shield which may be associatedwithl the rotor or, if a gang plow' is being used, with the rotors, which may beV inexpensively manufactured and assembled.

A further object is to provide a strong and durable shield of the above character which may be inexpensively and quickly .mounted upon or taken from operative' relation with the disintegrator, when itis desired to adjust or replace the blades thereof.

A further object is to provide a shield of'- the above general character so mountedwith respect to thedisintegrator as to move therewith and maintain its operative relation thereto when the disintegrator moves or.v is moved or adjusted relatively to thev plowV as when an obstruction is encountered `and the disintegrator moves laterally to permit the obstruction to pass between its blades and the mold-board.

A further objectis to provide a shield of.

the abovegeneral character, provided with. certain adjustable features, both as to the extent of covering` the area tilled and its relative height with respect thereto.

@their objects will be in part obvious and in part pointed out from the annexed drawings 'and the following analysis of theinvention.

r1`he invention accordingly consists in the features of construction, Jshe combination of parts, and` in the'unique relation of the Various members and the relative proportioning and dispositioning thereof,` alli as more clearly outlined herein.

To enable others skilled in the art to fully' comprehend the underlying features thereof in order that they may embody the same', by numerous modifications. in structure and'L relation contemplated by this invention,

drawings depicting several preferredl formsA Figure' 6 is a plan' view"ofsucli'modi-` ication, j 4 Y Y Figure 7 is a view inelevation, showing a" further modification;i4 Y f Y i Figure 8 is a partial'sectional planv'iewf thereof; and I F igure' 9 is a view taken'substantially on I the line' 9-1-9 A)of Figure 7 g j y y Referring' now tothe drawings in detail and more particularly'to'Figure1, ,10 indi.-

cates a disintegrator shaft provided with the` soil-:engaging blades 11 which operate' upon the furrow as it'isl turned by plow 12 and the usual mold-'board Y 10 is supported in'arsuita'ble' housing 14 provided'with trunnions 15 whereby the saine' may yield orl swii'i'g' relatively outwardly withV respect" to I the plow and' mold-board as when'an' obstruction "is encountered, such as a largeVrock'thatfh'asto pass between tlie' plow andthe disintegrator; v

Upon the' lower' partei-"sleeve portion of the housingk 121 there is provided l`a" fastening' support, suchV as a two-part bracketkthe' parts 1Gl and 17 being!suitably'secured together, as by means ofb'olts 18". Thejpart 17 .is of general U-shaped construction and the ends 20 are provided with slots 21 through which bolts 22 pass to hold two vertically disposed arms 23 in any .desired This shaft4 f nearly to the curvature of the plow upon the furrow. The vertical arms 23 are slotted also as at 25, thereby to permit vertical adjustment as well asl horizontal adjustment of the shield with respect tothe plow and the disintegrator. This is desirable for Y with different' types of standard plows the shape diifers materially, that is, some are llong and narrow, while others are short and relatively broad and deep. It will thus be seen thatthis modification permits anadjustment in three planes, that is, vertically, horizontally and radially, for byVV loosening/the nuts 18 the entire shield mayl be turned about the sleeve la to bring cer!A tain `paits of it either nearer or further away fromthe point of the plow, for ei;-V ample. j.

In Figure 3, there is shown a slightly different form of shield inv which the parts l are made' up of a plurality of sections 2G,

hinged together as at 27 and supported by suitable brackets 28 from the housing or Vsleeve 14. The supporting bolts 30 may co-act with slots 3l, thereby to obtain the desired vertical adjustment. The fastening means 30 will also permit an yadjustment of the shield about the axis of the tiller shaft.

" The modification shown in Figure 5 is very similar tor that just` described except V nently secured together along their adjacent edges. 33g`the adjustable mounting ofthe shield upon the housing 14 being also similar to that above described. v

In Figure 7 there is shown a still further modification in which `a plurality of sections 811- and 35 are utilized, one section telescoping within the other, that is, the part 35 is s o constructed and arranged as to telescope within the part 34, as appears more clearly from the planview, Fig. 8, and the detail partial sectional view, Fig. 9. The mounting of the shield by means of the bracketsfQS is substantially the same as that above described in connection with Fig. 8. As shown, the4 telescoping parts are curved sharply, but obviously, this lcurvature may be varied up to a straight line if desired. This construction facilitates quick access to .the rotor when desired without necessitating depending on the relative telescoping of the parts, control the'distance to which the disintegrated or pulverized earth is thrown by therotor, when operating upon the furrow turned by the plow and inold-board. Y

It will be noted from the above that all of these constructions are of simple and practical'design permitting readyadjustment in various planes, as desired, according to the nature or consistency of the soil being operated upon and they also permit ready access to the rotor when' necessary. Being preferably mounted directly upon the housing carrying the rotor, the shields will swing or move therewith when movement or adjustment thereof, with .respect to the. plow, takes place, and at all times shield the rotorV against contact by an exterior person or thing and at the same time control theV distance to which`v the pulverized earth is dis.y

charged. The Ainvention contemplates 'a strong and durable mechanism well adapted to accomplish among others all ofthe objects andadvantages herein set forth.

lVithout'v further analysis'the foregoingv will so fully reveal the gist of this 'invention that others can, by applying currentknowledge,` readily adapt it for various applica` tions without omitting certain features that from the standpoint of the prior artfairly` constitute essential characteristics of generic mounted thereon tol disintegrate earth in the l act of being vturned by the' plow, a shield adjustably mounted with respect to said tiller, and means providing for the adjustment of said shield,`said means comprising 'a clainp-V Y.

ing` bracket memberpandslotted brackets associated with the shield and cooperating with the clamping'braeket member.

' 'In a plow having a rotatable tiller mounted thereon to disintegrate earth-in the act of being turned bv the plow,`land a shieldJ adjustably supported with lrelation Vto said tiller, said shield including aplurality of plates arranged in a substantially conical lli? relation with respect tothe outer portion of the path of'travel of the tiller. A

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

THOMAS i-nc'irs.v j 

